Listening to Birds: Mahananda Sagare's Quiet Dialogue with Nature at Jehangir Art Gallery

From 1st to 7th June 2026, Mumbai's iconic Jehangir Art Gallery hosts Listening to Birds, a solo exhibition by contemporary artist Mahananda Sagare. Presented in the Hirji (Jehangir) Gallery, the exhibition brings together a compelling body of paintings that explore the subtle relationship between observation, memory, and the inner rhythms of nature.

The exhibition was inaugurated on 1st June by eminent artist Shakuntala Kulkarni, marking the beginning of a week-long visual journey that invites viewers into a world of quiet contemplation.

Nature as Presence, Not Subject

Rather than depicting nature through literal representation, Mahananda Sagare approaches it as a lived experience. Her paintings emerge from prolonged observation and a deeply personal engagement with the natural world. Birds, leaves, shadows, and fleeting organic forms appear throughout the exhibition, not as descriptive motifs but as emotional carriers that evoke memory, solitude, tenderness, and introspection.

The recurring crow forms featured in many of the works become powerful symbols of presence and transition. Sometimes they appear suspended between movement and stillness; at other times they dissolve into atmospheric fields of colour and texture. Their forms seem to emerge and disappear simultaneously, echoing the fleeting nature of perception itself.

The Language of Silence

One of the exhibition's most striking qualities is its restraint. Sagare avoids dramatic narratives and visual excess, choosing instead to build her compositions through subtle tonal shifts, layered textures, and atmospheric colour relationships.

Soft pinks merge into blues, muted greens dissolve into translucent whites, while deep indigo silhouettes float across dreamlike spaces. In works from the Crow Series, the bird appears almost weightless, transforming from a recognizable figure into an abstract presence. The viewer is encouraged not merely to look at the paintings but to inhabit them.

The paintings possess a meditative quality. They unfold slowly, rewarding sustained attention. Their emotional impact lies not in what they depict but in what they suggest.

Crows, Leaves and States of Being

The featured works reveal Sagare's ability to balance representation and abstraction. A solitary crow dissolving into pastel skies, two birds locked in a silent exchange, an abstract leaf suspended in a field of blue, or a dark avian form gliding through mist-like atmospheres—each image functions less as an object and more as a psychological landscape.

These paintings challenge viewers to reconsider familiar elements of nature. The crow, often overlooked in everyday life, becomes a vessel for reflection. Leaves transform into symbols of impermanence and renewal. Through these recurring forms, Sagare constructs a visual language rooted in observation yet reaching toward the intangible.

A Contemporary Reflection

Underlying the exhibition is an important contemporary question: how does one remain attentive in an age dominated by speed, distraction, and constant visibility?

Sagare's response is neither confrontational nor nostalgic. Instead, her paintings advocate for slowness. They encourage viewers to pause, observe, and reconnect with the subtle emotional temperatures that exist beneath the surface of daily life.

In this sense, Listening to Birds is more than an exhibition about nature. It is an exploration of perception itself—of what becomes visible when one chooses to listen rather than merely look.

An Exhibition Worth Experiencing

With its poetic visual language and contemplative atmosphere, Listening to Birds demonstrates Mahananda Sagare's distinctive artistic voice. The exhibition offers a refreshing alternative to spectacle-driven contemporary art, creating a space where silence becomes expressive and attention becomes transformative.

For visitors to Jehangir Art Gallery this week, the exhibition provides an opportunity to engage with paintings that linger long after viewing—works that whisper rather than shout, and in doing so, leave a lasting impression.